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Synopsis

The Delhi High Court directed the Inspector General Prisons (Delhi) to ensure that medical wards or quarantine zones are established in all jails for people with contagious diseases so that there is no compelling need to repeatedly release such accused facing trial for serious offences, on interim bail.

The court was hearing a bail application of one Arvind, who has been suffering from Lesions and Herpes which is a contagious disease.

Justice Asha Menon considered the Senior Medical Officer of the Jail's report that the condition would improve in cooler weather and granted Arvind interim bail for two months, subject to his furnishing a personal surety bond.

Court noted that Arvind was undergoing a trial under Sections 21, 25, and 29 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Counsel for the State opposed the bail application, claiming that Arvind was taking advantage of repeated interim bail and that the current regular bail applications had been rejected even up to the Supreme Court in an order dated March 8, 2022.

It was further argued that in accordance with the Supreme Court’s instructions, the trial is nearly finished, with only three witnesses remaining to be examined and the next hearing before the Trial Court is scheduled for September 20, 2022.

Hearing the submissions, the Court observed, “As Herpes is contagious, and even though the applicant was granted interim bail on several occasions, which he admittedly did not abuse, and his regular bail application was also denied, and the fact that a person suffering from a contagious disease is still allowed to stay in jail with no provision for quarantine is cause for concern.”

Accordingly, the court granted Arvind interim bail for two months with a personal surety bond of Rs.1 lakh with one surety of like amount.

Case Title: Arvind Yadav v. State (Govt. of NCT of Delhi)